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A review by lauraeydmann82
Harry, a History: The True Story of a Boy Wizard, His Fans, and Life Inside the Harry Potter Phenomenon by Melissa Anelli
4.0
Having been a big Harry Potter fan, and having listened to the podcast presented by the author I have been intrigued by this book for quite a while now, and picked up a copy cheap on amazon over Christmas.
I was interested in this look at the phenomenon, regardless of whether you like the series or not, it has had a huge impact on the world, children’s literature and the book world in particular. I wanted to see what it was like from someone who was more involved with the books and from someone in America, and read about the different offshoots and tangents from the books – like “wizard rock”, Laura Mallory and the attempts to ban the book in bible belt America, and the films.
This book didn’t disappoint in this respect – Anelli goes through the different aspects of the books – the wait between each novel, the fan fiction, the “shippers” (fans who theorised about relationships in the book) who fought against each other over plot points, the genre of music – Wizard Rock, the Internet presence of fans on the net, the Warner Brothers legal wrangles over merchandise and use of the Harry Potter name etc. and it is interesting and in some cases a little scary to see what happened during the height of the Harry Potter fame. I thought I was a big fan until I read this book and about fans who theorised and fought with each other over whether Harry would end up with Hermione or whether Ron would, and fans who have created bands and music, fan fiction, websites and more – all dedicated to the books.
Anelli managed to get two interviews with Jo Rowling – who loves the Leaky Cauldron fan website (Melissa Anelli’s website dedicated to all things Potter). She spoke of the different ways the fans had reacted to different aspects of the books, the films and the legal issues with Warner Brothers when she sold the film rights. The story of how Jo Rowling managed to write the first book and get it published was also pretty amazing in itself, being turned down by several publishers and the huge auction for the American rights. The story of Laura Mallory and her attempts (as well as others) to get the book banned in America because of the worry of it making children turn to witchcraft was both scary and ridiculous too.
Because I have listened to the podcast, I knew some of the names of the people that Anelli discussed regarding the world of the fandom, but I think anyone from the staunchest Potter fan to a muggle will be able to pick this book up and get on with it. The story is an interesting one, whether you are a Harry Potter fan or not, and a fascinating look into a phenomenon that got a generation of kids reading again. There are a few bits in the book where the level of fandom really did go over the top of my head – I really found it difficult to get so worked up and excited, but on the whole the story of Harry Potter and how he came to be one of the most famous fictional literary characters is most certainly a good one.
I was interested in this look at the phenomenon, regardless of whether you like the series or not, it has had a huge impact on the world, children’s literature and the book world in particular. I wanted to see what it was like from someone who was more involved with the books and from someone in America, and read about the different offshoots and tangents from the books – like “wizard rock”, Laura Mallory and the attempts to ban the book in bible belt America, and the films.
This book didn’t disappoint in this respect – Anelli goes through the different aspects of the books – the wait between each novel, the fan fiction, the “shippers” (fans who theorised about relationships in the book) who fought against each other over plot points, the genre of music – Wizard Rock, the Internet presence of fans on the net, the Warner Brothers legal wrangles over merchandise and use of the Harry Potter name etc. and it is interesting and in some cases a little scary to see what happened during the height of the Harry Potter fame. I thought I was a big fan until I read this book and about fans who theorised and fought with each other over whether Harry would end up with Hermione or whether Ron would, and fans who have created bands and music, fan fiction, websites and more – all dedicated to the books.
Anelli managed to get two interviews with Jo Rowling – who loves the Leaky Cauldron fan website (Melissa Anelli’s website dedicated to all things Potter). She spoke of the different ways the fans had reacted to different aspects of the books, the films and the legal issues with Warner Brothers when she sold the film rights. The story of how Jo Rowling managed to write the first book and get it published was also pretty amazing in itself, being turned down by several publishers and the huge auction for the American rights. The story of Laura Mallory and her attempts (as well as others) to get the book banned in America because of the worry of it making children turn to witchcraft was both scary and ridiculous too.
Because I have listened to the podcast, I knew some of the names of the people that Anelli discussed regarding the world of the fandom, but I think anyone from the staunchest Potter fan to a muggle will be able to pick this book up and get on with it. The story is an interesting one, whether you are a Harry Potter fan or not, and a fascinating look into a phenomenon that got a generation of kids reading again. There are a few bits in the book where the level of fandom really did go over the top of my head – I really found it difficult to get so worked up and excited, but on the whole the story of Harry Potter and how he came to be one of the most famous fictional literary characters is most certainly a good one.